How far can a US credit card company go to pursue and collect $4500 owed to them by a UK citizen, currently residing in the UK; the debt being incurred while he lived in the USA?
How far can a US credit card company go to pursue and collect $4500
owed to them by a UK citizen, currently residing in the UK; the debt
being incurred while he lived in the USA?
Where is the debtor now resident?
Under the Brussels Convention of 27 September 1968 on jurisdiction and
the enforcement of judgments in civil and commercial matters a resident
of one contracting state may be sued in the courts of another
contracting state for a civil or commercial debt unless the contract
underlying the transaction specifies another forum for jurisdiction.
The United States is a signatory to the Convention and, if the debtor is
resident within the jurisdiction of another signatory, he may be sued
in the USA. Furthermore, any judgment obtained is enforceable through
the courts of the defendant's jurisdiction..
For the full text of the convention see
http://www.curia.eu.int/common/recdoc/convention/en/c-textes/_brux-te....
- Now resident in the UK. Based on that information, it looks as
though they could go the whole way to collect the debt.
Regardless of any moral judgements on the wrongs of falling into
debt; my intention is to finally settle the account before the end of
the year. However, the debt collector in the USA has made it difficult
for me to make any payment from the UK to cover the balance. I offered
payment via electronic bank transfer from a UK account, but they
rejected this on the grounds that they don't have any US bank account
to receive the funds. This I find bizarre!
- Out of interest, I wonder if anyone has ever been persued for consumer debt
in this way, debts of below £3,000 across borders.
In many cases, the Credit Card Company, on finding you where no longer at
your address in the USA, and not able to locate another US address, would
put it down to experience. You must have given them to much information.
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